Time is now for Women's IPL: Raj

India captain calls for introduction of female T20 tournament in home country on eve of WWC decider

Aaron Pereira, London
23 July 2017

With her team all set for their biggest-ever match, India captain Mithali Raj has ramped up calls for the introduction of a Women's Indian Premier League.

"I think it is (time), now looking at the way the girls have been performing in the last couple of years, and we've also seen how Smriti (Mandhana) and Harmanpreet (Kaur) have benefited from their exposure to the WBBL," Raj said.

"I'm sure if the other youngsters in the side are exposed to the same culture even the domestic standards in Indian women's cricket will also improve immensely."

Kaur rages then unleashes in World Cup semi

Raj, India's greatest-ever ODI run-scorer in women's cricket, was hopeful that her side's campaign would inspire her home board to invest more into growing the game among women in India and start a female T20 domestic tournament.

"The BCCI is looking up to women's cricket and there might be a lot of changes back home if we go on to win the World Cup," she said.

"Those changes could benefit the future generations for years to come, women's cricket in India will have a brand of its own.

Only Australia and England have established T20 leagues for women, with Raj hopeful victory on Sunday could kick-start India's plans.

"This win will give it that edge for young girls to take up the sport back home and maybe Women's IPL will be in the pipeline," she added.

India, England set for Lord's showdown

Sydney Thunder batter and semi-final Player of the Match Harmanpreet Kaur played in the second season in the WBBL, and looms as a key to India's success against England, but suffered a shoulder setback during their final training session at Lord's.

"She's fit enough to take the ground, she's taking a precaution to not aggravate any niggles further," Raj said of her star batter's injury.

Kaur was in obvious discomfort in the nets, grimacing as she endeavoured to rotate her shoulder, with medical staff working on her throughout Saturday's session.

India will be confident heading into their second Women's World Cup final - after reaching the decider in 2005 – already boasting a win over their opponents in the group stages.